As a peaceful warrior, I would choose when, where and how I would behave.With that commitment, I began to live the life of a warrior.~Dan Millman

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Water and the Human Body

By Janelle Deeds Nutrition Consultant & Educator

You have heard it once; you’ve heard it many times…water is vital to the quality of your health. But what is really going on when you take that drink of water? Why does it really make a difference, especially if you aren’t even thirsty? And what is all the fuss about?

Keeps your organ and joints moist - this permits the passage of nutrients and wastes between the blood vessels and the rest of the body.

Helps to maintain muscle tone and supports weight loss - water plays a key role in the metabolic breakdown of proteins and carbohydrates.

Supports the regulation of your body temperature - when the body becomes too warm you will break out in a sweat. If you cannot sweat and your temperature rises, you can experience heat stroke or exhaustion.

Transports oxygen to the cells.

Your body is entirely made up of cells. Protoplasm, the basic material of living cells, is made of macronutrients that you are very familiar with; proteins, fats and carbohydrates. They are integrated in cells and with the various chemical elements combined with water to create the more familiar macronutrients. The basic functioning of the cells, including water balance, digestion, removing toxins, elasticity of the cells, oxygenation, nutrition, sodium/potassium balance etc. depend on Cell Salts. These cell salts are vital nutritional elements of the cell and lacking any one or more of these minerals will prevent the cells from up taking the proper nutrients supplied by digestion and the blood. In the late 1800’s, Dr. Willhelm H. Schuessler observed that the human body, when reduced to ashes contained only 12 minerals in the form of salts.

In a normal healthy body, minerals and micro elements pass through the cell membrane to the nucleus by electro-osmosis. A cell exchanges elements with the rest of the body by electrolysis. The body needs electrolytes (salt minerals like sodium, potassium, chloride and bicarbonate) for basic body functions. If your body loses water, it loses the ability to use these minerals.

Dehydration of the body is a serious matter. At 1% dehydration, most individuals will find that they have reduced athletic performance; others may experience a headache, tiredness, irritability or just feel thirsty. They often may not feel quite right but with no specific concerns. When 2% dehydration is reached, athletes can experience a 30% loss in performance, others may find rapid onset of fatigue, increased heart rate and elevated body temperature. Metabolic processes are now hindered which can include symptoms of indigestion and constipation. When the body can no longer release waste properly it retains toxins which can create a dis-eased state.

Hydration and detoxification start inside and continues to reflect on the outside. By keeping your water intake up throughout the day you are providing your body with the necessary support to function at an optimal level.

Look to your foods for water as well. Dry, packaged and processed foods contain little to no water. However, organic, seasonal, fresh fruits and vegetables are abundant in all of the necessary nutrients, water, vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants, and phytonutrients. They taste good, are nourishing for your body as well as offer a refreshing alternative.

A few tips for drinking water:

Never drink water that smells or tastes like chlorine. It is the natural minerals that you want in your water, not chemicals.

Use bottled water as a temporary solution. It can be expensive, is environmentally unfriendly and the chemicals in the plastic can leach out to give undesirable side effects. Check into a home purifying system or water service.

Have your water tested for leaching. Impurities from plumbing and hot water tanks can show up in your cooking water or shower!

You can consider a water treatment product such as the water wand, cell food or many other options on the market today to facilitate your blood’s ability to become more alkaline. By decreasing the surface tension of the water/liquid, you align the water molecules and restores it to its natural state. Water in its natural state supports the increase in your blood’s available oxygen and thus improving the function of your body and thereby reducing fatigue.